In Pain There Is Love
by Missmarybeth
Summary: Jugheads journey to the Southside hasn't been easy. His friendships, and relationship, are constantly in peril, and the new girl doesn't make things any easier. (Anyone whose not a fan of Jughead/OC pairings, please don't read. Set at the beginning of Season 2. M for sexual content)
1. Chapter 1

A week at Southside High had been and gone. Apart from my run in with the Ghoulies, there had been nothing notable.

Until today.

"Looks like some northside princess got lost on her way to the castle," Sweetpea jeered.

I looked up from my sandwich at the girl walking through the cafeteria. She definitely looked like a northsider. Cream knit jumper tucked into a button up denim skirt. Thick chestnut hair braided into two french plaits. Skin just fading from a summer tan. Eyes of molten chocolate framed by thick, dark lashes. She was beautiful, and the thought made me look away.

"She's not from the northside," I replied through a mouthful.

Sweetpea scoffed, giving me a funny look.

"What are you talking about? Just look at her." He gestured to the girl as she sat alone at a table.

She pulled a packed lunch out of her backpack. There was something about her that I couldn't put my finger on. Some sort of faint recognition. Yet I knew she wasn't from the northside. After all, if she was, why on earth would she be here?

"I never saw her there," I replied.

Toni eyed the girl closely as Sweetpea and Fogarty shared a mischievous grin.

"Only one way to find out." Sweetpea grinned as he moved towards her.

"No Sweetpea." But it was no use.

Sweetpea and Fogarty were already advancing towards the new girl. I made to stand, but Toni grabbed my wrist. She gave me a warning look.

"Stay out of it Jones," she warned.

I shook her off. Whether this new girl came from the northside or not, she didn't deserve to be ambushed on her first day.

"Hey there my little pony, I think you strayed too far from the stables," Sweetpea taunted.

She looked up. I had expected some sort of anxiety, or embarrassment, or just a hint of nerves. There was no trace of any of these feelings in her eyes. She looked uninterested.

"Back off Jason Dean. I'm not looking for trouble." She went to pick up her water bottle, but Sweetpea took it from the table.

He looked at it as if it were the most interesting object in the world. She stared fire up at him, her hands clenched under the table. I pushed to the front, to stand by the girls side. Sweetpea narrowed his eyes at me.

"Give it back, Sweetpea," I ordered.

He raised a brow, and turned to Fogarty.

"Once a northsider, always a northsider huh," Sweetpea sneered.

The girl stood slowly.

"I don't mean to get in between whatever pissing match you two clearly have going on, but I want my water back. Now." She demanded.

Sweetpea chuckled. I folded my arms. I could see Toni, still sat at our table, shaking her head. Begging me _don't provoke him._

"You think you can order me around?" Sweetpea asked, his bravado kicking in.

I opened my mouth to say something, to defend her, but I didn't get the chance. She snatched the water bottle from his hand so quickly I barely even caught the gesture. Sweetpea made as if to take it back, but she thrust her palm into his chest. Her fingers curled in his flannel, preventing him from moving forward. I stood, mouth open wide, as Sweetpea stared at her. Fogarty was frozen still. This never happened.

"Back. Off," she repeated.

There was a moment of tense silence. I tried to suppress my smile, but it pulled at the corners of my mouth nonetheless. Sweetpea grit his teeth. I felt the whole cafeteria look on. The two glared at each other. The new girl, confident in her stance, showed no signs of letting up. Sweetpea wavered, and the new girl gave a subtle, triumphant smile.

"I thought so." She sat down, and sipped from her water bottle.

I raised a brow at Sweetpea. For a moment, he hesitated. Unable to bare any more embarrassment, he took a step back, admitting defeat. He and Fogarty turned and walked away. I chuckled, and looked down at the new girl. I admired her bravado. She looked up at me momentarily, eying me from head to toe, before she looked back at her lunch.

"Nice welcoming committee you've got here," she muttered through a mouthful.

I shrugged. There was this feeling in my stomach, as if an adventure was on the horizon. A rising excitement that seemed to emanate from this new girl. I felt something tingle in my fingertips, an electric in my veins.

"Not all of us are hard headed neanderthals," I replied.

She raised an eyebrow at her sandwich. Chewed thoughtfully. Looked up at me through her eyelashes subtly.

"I'm Jughead, by the way," I felt compelled to add.

She gave a short, breathy laugh, before fixing me properly for the first time. Her eyes locked on mine. She stared at me with a knowledge and piercing fire that burnt through my skin, down to my innermost thoughts. I felt trapped.

"I know who you are, Forsythe Pendleton Jones," she smiled.

Before I could say a thing, even begin to express my confusion and astonishment, she had looked away. She pushed her headphones into her ears, and cranked the volume up high.


	2. Chapter 2

I looked down at all the code breaking books I had found in the library. The letters, numbers, endless combinations swam around my head like blood thirsty sharks. Toni sat beside me, flipping back and forth, noting occasional things down. It seemed so unlike the Blackhood, to leave a cypher like this. It didn't seem to fit his MO. I kept looking at the cypher, for something, anything to add up. I rubbed the bridge of my nose, looking at the empty coffee thermos.

"Coffee run?" I proposed.

Toni pulled up her nose.

"Come on Jones, I got it last time," she moaned.

The door opened, and there stood the new girl, whose name still had not been awarded to me. In one arm, she balanced two large takeaway cups and a large brown paper bag. In the other, she had piled books on cyphers, murderers, and a few case files. I was surprised to say the least, and Toni stared with a slight smile.

"The fairy godmother has arrived," Toni joked.

The new girl looked between Toni and me awkwardly.

"Sorry… I didn't expect Jug to have company," she gestured to the two coffees.

Toni shrugged, and picked up the coffee thermos.

"That's cool, I'll go grab some more." Toni pushed herself away from the table.

I opened my mouth to stop her. I felt nervous to be left alone with the new girl. She scared me a little. I still hadn't got the answer as to how she knew who I was. How she knew my real name. Toni peered into the paper bag, and snatched up a muffin. She turned back to me and raised her eyebrow.

"She's a keeper," she mouthed before she left.

As the door shut behind Toni, we were left in silence. She stood for a moment, awkward in the doorway. I nodded to the paper bag.

"You got any M&Ms?" I asked.

She rooted around in the bag, and pulled out a jumbo pack of M&Ms. She threw them at me, and I caught them with one hand. She moved towards me, and sat in the seat Toni had once sat in. She dropped her books onto the table, and exhaled heavily. She spilled the contents of the bag out on the table, and held out the takeaway cup to me. I took it, and wrapped my fingers around it's warmth.

"How did you know I'd be here?" I asked, a little curious.

She sipped her coffee slowly as she flipped open one of her books.

"I read some of your articles. The ones on the Jason Blossom murder. This seemed like the kinda thing you'd be into." She gestured to the cypher printed in the Register.

I blushed a little at the thought of her reading my articles from the Blue and Gold. I cracked open the M&Ms and poured some into my mouth to distract myself. She took the paper in her hand, and examined the symbols again. She frowned as she sipped on the coffee.

"So… This Blackhood guy, what do we know about him?" She asked.

I took a deep breath as I lifted up all the articles Betty's mom had published on him. The thought of Betty made my heart falter a little, and I took a moment to glance at my phone. I had a few missed calls, but for some reason, I couldn't bring myself to call her back. I handed her the articles, and watched her look over the list of attacks. The shooting of Fred Andrews, the murder of Geraldine Grundy, the attack on Midge and Moose, the letter to Alice. Her eyes narrowed as she read them over. I cleared my throat as I realised I was staring.

"So… do you have a name?" I asked.

She choked a little on her coffee through her laughter.

"Oh yeah. Sorry about that. I'm Octavia," she held out her hand, and we shook in a weird, formal gesture.

"You know, this just doesn't sit well with me." She gestured to the articles.

"Oh? How so?" I asked.

"I don't know…" she trailed off as she bit into a twizzler.

My eyes focused on her mouth as she let the sweet twist between her lips. I sucked down a gulp of my coffee. It was sweet, different to any blend I had ever tasted before. I frowned at the cup, trying to figure out what was in it.

"It's vanilla and toffee." She must have sensed my confusion.

I hummed in approval. She picked up the cypher again, and the letter he'd sent to Alice. Looked at them both. She shook her head.

"How he talks to the town, all this crap about cleansing sinners. Then he sends a cypher to this… Betty Cooper? Why? Why her? Why is she the only one who could solve this? If we focus on why her, then maybe we can figure out the code he used." She looked up at me, her eyes filled with focus and drive.

She was right. Why had Betty been sent this letter? It couldn't be simply because of Alice. Or because of the Jason Blossom case. The Blackhood chose her for a reason, and maybe if we could figure that out, we could figure out what cypher he used for her.

"Betty is my girlfriend, we can meet her tomorrow and ask her what she knows," I suggested.

Octavia raised her eyebrow.

"Bettys your girlfriend?" She asked.

We sat a moment in silence. I suppose I hadn't given off the impression I had a girlfriend. Things with Betty hadn't been great at the moment. We'd felt strained since I'd moved here. The emergence of Octavia hadn't helped. There was something about her. Something about the fire in her eyes and the keen eye with which she surveys the world. It made me want to be around her.

"I didn't take you for a double agent," she joked.

She put her feet up on the desk. Her denim skirt rode a little higher as she did so, and I began to mentally beg for Toni to come back. She finished her twizzler, before she grabbed a 3 musketeers bar. She ripped it open and took a large bite, before she hefted a book onto her lap. For a few minutes, we sat and read in silence. All I could hear was her munching. She was powering through the junk on the desk. A blueberry muffin, a Kit Kat, some Tootsie Rolls, Milk Duds, three Peppermint Patties and some Sour Patch Kids. I watched in awe. I didn't think anyone could eat more than I do. I thought about what she'd first said to me. How she knew my full name, and the curiosity ate at me. As she bit into a Butterfinger, the words flew out of my mouth.

"How did you know my name?" I blurted.

She looked up, her eyes a little hooded. She looked almost guilty as she laid down the half eaten chocolate. She swallowed, and laid the book down on the desk.

"My dad… he was a serpent back in the day. He knew your dad. When he heard FP was sent to jail, he hightailed it down from Hocodale to find your mom. Second Serpent law, right?" She looked at her fingers, picking at her nails.

I didn't know how to react to that. When I looked at her baby blue jumper, her pretty eyes, I didn't see any trace of a Serpent. She could see how surprised I was, and she smiled to herself.

"Didn't expect that did you," she muttered.

"Your dad was a Serpent," I stated, just trying to wrap my head around it.

She nodded. There was a darkness behind her eyes. A withheld sadness that bubbled and raged below the surface. For a moment, she was consumed by it. Then, she looked up, and smiled softly.

"In my blood for generations," she rolled her eyes.

"What's your last name again?" I asked, scratching the back of my head.

I knew something about the way she looked was familiar. Maybe I'd seen her dad before, or even her, when we were younger.

"Hull. Octavia Hull," She told me, and then it all made sense.

Lloyd Hull, my dads old buddy. His wife, her mother, had died fifteen years ago. His son… well I don't remember what happened to him, but I knew it was something terrible. I barely remember her. I think I only ever saw her once. A little, scruffy thing hiding behind her father's leg in the Whyte Wyrm. I looked at her now, and suddenly all the pieces that were the puzzle of Octavia fell into place. Incredibly brave, but broken inside. I wanted to reach out, to take her hand maybe, and reassure her.

Toni came through the door, waving the thermos. I hadn't realised we had inched closer, but Toni raised her eyebrows at how close we sat. I pushed myself back, and Octavia moved up a seat.

"So, any advances in the case?"


End file.
